Deceptive Dreams
by picturesandwords
Summary: Lucy starts having a dream about Natsu and it's to the point where it's affecting their friendship. One moment, Lucy feels there is a chance they could possibly be more then friends...while others, she's in doubt. Will Lucy's dreams come true, and what do they mean? Or are just driving them further apart...
1. Chapter 1, Just a Dream

**Hi everyone, this is my first publish FanFic, so please don't hate, but I would love comments and suggestions! THanks to the most beautiful of lies for an awesome summery! So without further adu... Enjoy**

Lucy bent her neck down like a swan, blond hair draped across his hand. She wondered what he could be thinking, the fire in his eyes was gone. Then, he moved his head so close to hers she could feel his dragon's breath caressing her face. His hand tightened slightly at her waist as he pulled her closer. Almost shyly she took her hand and tangled it in the back of his salmon colored hair. They stood their for a moment poised, finally when the electricity coercing in the space between their bodies was unbearable...

Suddenly Lucy looked up, and saw the tears in Natsu's eyes. Not again she thought. This had been happening more and more lately, she wanted to stop she really did but... She couldn't, she wasn't strong enough to push him away, but she wasn't strong enough to protect him either.

She knew how this dream would play out, they would stand there for a moment more, then he would pull away, she would wake up. How long between dreams was anyones guess, but they would always come. She didn't want to re-live it again and again, even though she knew it was all a dream, the pain was real.

She thought she knew, and was resined to the fact he would pull away. So, when instead of doing that he came closer she panicked. Thoughts raced around her head, as her heart tried to beat out of her chest. Strange, she never though of him like this, before the dreams...

These thoughts had but a moment to race around, before they and everything else was banished from her head, because suddenly and against all logic they were kissing. Lucy could taste his tears, and feel the sadness in his body, how desperately alone he was. She pushed herself into him, not caring if this was the right thing to do, she wanted to feel his body against hers. Suddenly, she felt something strange, his sadness evaporating into the wind as he wound his hands around to her back, returning her kiss two fold.

Lucy sat up in bed, or at least she thought it was her bed, until moving into space where her mattress should have been, landing painfully on her floor in a pile of blankets. The couch, she hazily remembered, I was sleeping on the couch. Almost as soon as the logical next question-Why was I sleeping on the couch?-Crossed her mind, it was answered in the form of a questioning, "Lucy?" coming from her bed.

Oh, the realization slowly coming to her, out of the thick fog that generally crowds one's mind at 2am, if one has just woken up, Natsu took my bed. Silently she cursed. Why did he have to always insist on staying here of all places? She hadn't told him about the dreams, and waking up to find him in the same room probably didn't help. Just friends, she quickly repeated to herself. She had never even thought they could be more, until the stupid dreams started. They had forced her into look at him in a different way, and now their friendship was suffering because of it.

For a while longer she sat on the floor wondering what this latest dream could mean, hopefully it meant it was over. That whatever was causing his was some joke spell, or potion that somehow found its way into her drink. She wanted to believe that whatever was causing them would stop now that her dream changed, that it wasn't her mind.

Abruptly her train of thought crashed, its way bared by movement from her bed. Natsu had gotten up. She looked to see he had taken off his vest to sleep but not his scarf. Before the dreams she wound have started teasing him, 2am or not, but now it felt weird, like if she said anything then she had noticed.

"Hey Lucy, why you sitting on the floor?" Natsu, just as clueless as usual

Just like that the spell binding Lucy was broken, "Clothes, fire princess!" She said, louder than normal, but not quite a yell because she really didn't want to get kicked out of her apartment.

Natsu looked embarrassed as he quickly scrambled to find his vest.

Weird, Lucy thought. He looked embarrassed, and didn't even try and kill me for calling him fire princess... Since when did he care more about the fact he didn't have his vest, then that I used a form his insult for Gray on him right after telling him to find so clothes. Maybe he didn't get the joke... or just decided it wasn't funny... He probably didn't look embarrassed at all, or did he...

Lucy was so wrapped up in her thoughts that it wasn't until Natsu's third time saying her name that she responded. "Huh?" She muttered, her voice heavy with confusion. "Say that again."

"I was trying to tell you I had a weird dream, but your weren't exactly here so never mind." As soon as he had finished saying this he flopped down on her bed, and in a matter of seconds was asleep.

That was out of character, Lucy thought. I wonder what he had a dream about... What if we had the same dream? She cringed and blushed at the thought. He has been acting strange lately.

These thoughts and many more, followed her as she got up and lay back down on the couch. They didn't stop until she finally fell asleep. Then they waited patently, knowing they had time, they would be on her mind for a long time to come.


	2. Chapter 2, To Walk or Not to Walk

When Lucy finally dragged herself off the couch in the morning, it was late. Slowly, she stretched and yawned, her blond hair tangled on top of her head. She stumbled around in a sleepy daze, looking for something to tell her what time it was. But, when she eventually made her way into the kitchen to look at the microwave, all she could do was stare at it in disbelief. 9:30, she thought. For once I get to sleep... Why hasn't someone come and woken me up? It wasn't like Lucy minded she had been aloud to sleep in, she was just thoroughly confused.

I can't believe Erza let me sleep in, she said she had something important to talk to me about, maybe the boys were fighting... No, still she would have beaten them up by now. Last night she was practically jumping out of her armor trying to tell me- Last night... Lucy's thoughts trailed off as she remembered last night's dream. In the morning light streaming into her apartment it all seamed stupid. She had a weird dream, then because of it was mean to her friend, and had been being mean to him for almost a month now. What did he give her in return? Letting her sleep.

Lucy raced out of the kitchen, maybe she hurried her friends would still be at the guild hall.

Guild Hall

Lucy burst though the door into chaos. Fists, feet, people, and random pieces of furniture and silverware flew around looking for unsuspecting victims. Careful, Lucy make her way over to an unoccupied seat well out of the chaos. Still well aware of the fight around her, she settled in to wait, strangely relaxed for someone occasional dodging forks.

After about three minutes, the building finally stopped shaking and people lost interest in fighting. Lucy watched as conversations started up as if nothing had happened, she smiled. No other guild could compare to us, she thought, fighting one minute and talking the next...

"Hey, Lucy!" Natsu said sitting down next to her. "I found the perfect job!"

"What is it?" She replied.

Happy flew up beside Natsu as he was talking, interjecting an 'eye sir' at the end of his explanation, "All we have to do is deliver a package!"

Lucy looked at him confused, "doesn't that mean taking a form of transport?"

Natsu grinned, "Nope!" He said, "That's why it's perfect, this job specifically requires us to walk!"

"Look Nastu," Lucy says, "Just because Gray said take a hike doesn't mean you should actually do it!"

She sees shadow flit Natsu's face, thinking her tone of voice hurt him for a second, but it's gone quickly, and he says, "Ya, ha ha Luce, but seriously are you coming, if you don't I'll be stuck delivering this thing on my own!"

She gives quizzical look, "What about Happy?" She asks.

Quickly, the blue cat interjected, "It says walk, you really think I'm going to do it?" He flapped his mightily, causing a slight breeze, before continuing, "I fly!"

"Happy is coming," Natsu says, "But since this job is walking only, he has to stay far enough so it's not like he is on the mission." He smiled at his devious plan, the asked, "So Luce... You coming?"

Lucy sat, indecision holding her like a vice, she wanted to be alone to think over her new dream, but also she owed it to Natsu to go. Finally, Natsu won out because surly she could still think, it's not like he could talk forever. Or so she hoped.

"I'll come" she said.

"Great!" Natsu practically yelled, "Come on!" So saying, he grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the guild, completely ignoring the whistle they received while departing.

**Hope you liked chapters one and two! I will try and update soon but no promises... **

**Thx for reading!**


	3. Chapter 3, Don't run with packages

**Authors Notes**

**Thanks for all the follows, favorites, and reviews! Sorry I haven't updated sooner, I've kinda been spending all my free time drawing... Anyway I hope you like this chapter nothing really happens but I needed a cute chapter before the real stuff actually begins (you'll see soon)! **

**DayInSky: Thx! Was this soon enough?**

**CopDog: I will put the parts where Lucy thinks in italics, I did in the word program I'm using but I guess it didn't transfer. Also thx!**

**The most beautiful of lies: Thx! :) **

In the outskirts of Magnolia, on a small hill, sat a house. It was a nice enough looking house, Lucy noted. Blue paint with white trim coated its wooden shingles, windows looked out over the town. Slowly they walked up to it's front door, and knocked.

Lucy and Nastu stood listening to the sound reverberate around the inside of the house. Just when it finally died away, and Lucy was tempted to ask Natsu if he sure this was the right place, someone opened the door.

In front of them stood short man wearing Bermuda shorts, and the loudest Hawaiian tee-shirt ever made. His white hair had been haphazardly slicked back so the half of it was flat and the other stood up as if it had been hit with an electric shock. He looked at them for a second, before realizing who they were. He jumped slightly before saying, "Come in!"

Natsu and Lucy exchanged a glance, both of them wondering about the sanity of the strange man.

"Hurry, hurry, hurry! We don't have all day... AND I wasn't born yesterday neither!"

Slowly they followed him into a entryway that smelled strangely like cat. Glancing around, Lucy could see that the strange little man's eccentric taste extended past just his clothes. One wall was painted a lime green, another bright orange, and a third some sort of wallpaper.

"Welcome! My house is your house! Mi casa es su casa!" The short man said rather loudly.

Nervously, Lucy asked, "What would you like us to do with our shoes..." She trailed off because the man's face seemed to be turning a strange shade of purple.

"Didn't you just hear me?!" He practically screamed, "MY HOUSE IS YOUR HOUSE!"

Natsu broke in, strangely calm for the situation, saying, "We're putting our shoes right here by the door... okay?"

Lucy stared at him thinking, _since when can he say something that helps a situation? That's almost as weird as this short dude... _

Natsu dispersed her thoughts by saying, "Don't just stand there, if it's our house then the least you can do is try and keep it clean." So saying he reached over and took her shoes from her hands. His fingers brushed hers, causing her to blush, for some reason the words _our house_, had taken up residence in her brain. _I'm just as bad as Juvia._ She thought.

The short man coughed slightly, then said, "Come along, follow me." He turned down a hallway, only to jump back in surprise, a small cat sitting pleased on his head.

"Shame on you Hubert!" The short man said.

"Meow?" Hubert replied.

The short man sighed, before saying, "Yes, I suppose your right this is the second time so... Shame on me! Shame, Sir Edger Watering-can Pumpkin Jr. the Third!"

"Meow!" Hubert said happily.

"Next time though, it will be shame on you!" Said Sir Edger Watering-can Pumpkin Jr. the Third

"Meow?" Hubert asked, jumping from his perch on Sir E's head.

"Don't meow me! You know the rule; fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me. So next time it's back to one!" Sir E finished this sentence triumphant, knowing he had won his argument against his cat.

"Alright where were we..." Sir E asked.

Lucy was ready to get out of here so she said, "You were about to give us the package to deliver."

Sir E jumped, before saying, "Oh, Yes, the package! One second..."

A second later he was back, a package in one had and a bag of apples, "Here you are, the package." He handed the package to Natsu, "Now remember, DO NOT run with it."

Natsu nodded, holding the package like it might explode.

"And here take some apples, I don't want you attacked by doctors." Sir E handed the apples to Lucy. "Now out with you! Early bird gets the worm!" Sir E exclaimed.

Lucy and Natsu pulled on their shoes, and left as quickly as they could without running. In their haste they forgot to ask where they would be delivering the package to. It wasn't until they were a safe distance from the house that they first realized this fact. Sadly a "safe distance" had taken an hour of walking to achieve.

"I suppose we could go back..." Lucy said shuddering.

In response Natsu fell to the ground and pretended to be dying.

"Okay, so what do you suggest?" Lucy said to the figure lying strangely still on the ground.

Natsu leaped to his feet, holding something above his head, and waving it like the winning lottery ticket. "Look, the job request!" He shouted.

"Oh!" Yelled Lucy, catching on at once, "It should say on there!"

Natsu scanned the paper quickly, while at the same time saying, "And we won an all expenses paid trip to..." He stopped his face falling, he said the last word in a much more somber tone, "Sage City."

Lucy was outraged, "That crazy watering-can expects us to walk all the way to Sage City?! That's a day by train!"

Natsu looked at her and said, "We could always go back..."

This time it was Lucy's turn to play dead.

**I wonder what they're delivering... Something you shouldn't run with, or at least according to the guy who takes saying seriously... XD **


	4. Chapter 4, I think

**Authors Notes **

**Thanks 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 for the favorites, follows and reviews! Hope you like this chapter, it's import and lots of stuff happens... **

**In answer to reviews: The package does in fact contain... Oh, wait never mind, on with story... ;)**

When they finally stopped walking, it was dark out. Lucy had wanted to keep walking to the nearest town so they could have a real place to sleep, but Natsu had insisted, pointing out the fact they wouldn't make it until midnight at the pace they were going. They left the path, and finding a clearing, set up camp. Natsu had started a fire, and they had made the remarkable discovery of how good roasted apples are.

Lucy yawed, and before she even had time to say good night, she was asleep. Her head hit the ground, landing on a pile of moss, but even if it had bean a rock it wouldn't have woken her. She was locked fast in a dream.

Lucy's dream

Lucy's dream was different than normal, well as normal as a dream can be. She wasn't standing with Natsu, she was hiding. Natsu sat alone, hunched over, salmon hair obscuring his face, his scarf nowhere to be seen. Lucy looked down, only to see she was holding it tight in her clenched fist.

"Natsu!" Lucy called out.

Slowly he looked over to where she was, his face devoid of any emotion, save a deep sadness.

"Look Natsu, I found your scarf!" Lucy called. Pushing through the bush she had been hiding behind, she started toward him. Her feet pounded against the ground as she ran getting close and closer. Wind pulled at the scarf in her hand, and when she looked at it she realized it was slowly being pulled apart.

Natsu called out her, "Lucy what are doing, I thought I said leave me alone." His voice broke slightly at the end of the sentence, and he turned away.

Not being able to come closer Lucy had to yell instead,"Natsu wait... Please!"

He turned to look at her, and she could see tears on his face. They streamed down his face like liquid moonlight. "You already know, so why say it again." He called back to her.

"N..na..nat..su" She stuttered.

He started walking away, but his voice filled with hurt said, "Lucy... I..I.." He paused, then forced out what he was trying to say, "Lucy... I love you..."

Stars shone brightly above Lucy when she woke, their pinpricks of light blurred by the tears in her eyes. Silently, she got up and wiped them away. The fire had burnt down to coals, but still gave out enough warmth so that when she picked up a stick and held it to them it lit without problem. Carful to keep the flame burning she pulled the stick out of the fire, and moved it so it worked a torch. Then silent as a midwinter snowfall she left.

A short while later Natsu woke up. He too had been dreaming, just not the same dream. His dreams had been memories of his past, his life before finding Igneel. He had once had parents just like everyone, parents that were all to human.

Memories washed over him, and thinking Lucy was still sound asleep, he let them pull him in. He closed his eyes, letting the darkness found there set the stage. As the first flash of memory came, he sat up, wanting to be able to face it head on.

Lucy had been walking for only a minute before she came to a good place to sit. Now she was away from their camp site, her mind had begun to clear allowing her to form complete thoughts.

_It was just a simple dream, she thinks, nothing like that would really happen. Natsu would never take off his scarf, much less lose it. Why would he be so sad? So sad, it hurt to see in a dream... Sad enough to make it feel like my heart was being twisted into knots... And it was my fault._ A small voice spoke at the back of her mind, whispering, _Didn't you want it to be like that? Isn't that what you want... Nastu no longer you problem, him knowing... _

"Aaaagg!" Lucy said aloud, "That's not what I want, not at all!" Then, almost whispering, "I care more than that... I... I love him, I think."

Slowly, as if her realization had real weight, Lucy stood up and started back toward their camp. The going was slow, but she was lucky enough to see where she had come from.

When she arrived she was greeted with a terrible sight, Natsu crying. Quickly she ran over to him. Silent sobs shook his body, tears leaking from beneath closed eyes. Lucy sat down, wrapping her arms around him. Holding him close enough she could feel the heat come from him body, and damp tears staining her shoulder. She might not be positive she loved him, but she did know one thing, she would protect him, she never wanted him to need to cry.

**So what do you think? PLEASE REVIEW**


	5. Chapter 5, IT WAS TEMPORARY INSANITY

**Authors notes: **

**I'm so sorry it's been forever! I would like to say this chapter is extra long to make up but it isn't... IM SORRY! Anyway this next chapter will confuse you even more but I promise I have a plan. **

**In other news school started so I'm not going to update as quick... ;( But never fear I still am writing this!**

When Lucy woke up she found herself hugging Natsu. Quickly she scrambled away from him, and was about to give him a 'Lucy Kick' and call him a perverted flame brain before she remembered why she had been hugging him. Her face flushed, and she mentally face-palmed. _What was I thinking?_ She thought, _Tell me that didn't really happen... _But the fact she had woken up with Natsu and and the footprints leading out of the clearing told the true story.

She looked down at Natsu and sighed. How could one person have such a big impact on her life. Heck, she'd even started thinking more like him... _I'm even more of an idiot than he is_, she thought. _Did I really promise myself I would protect him? What would he even need protecting from? _

She snapped herself back into reality, looking down at the salmon haired boy on the ground, she realized he wouldn't be waking up any time soon. Quietly she tip-toed away, she had an idea she wanted to follow up on.

Rocks crunched under her feet as she walked up and down the road. "Happy! Happy!" She called into the morning air. "Where are you?" And finally after receiving no response for what seemed like forever, "COME ON YOU LAZY FUR BALL, WAKE UP ALREADY, I NEED TO TALK TO YOU!"

The very tops of the trees shook with revelations of Lucy's yell, well one tree... Lucy looked up at it and almost screamed, but before she did she saw a blue paw.

"Happy," She exclaimed relieved.

Happy flew down to hover beside her, saying, "Eye sir!"

Lucy paused for a moment, wondering how to fraise her question so that Happy would tell her anything.

"Do you have any fish?" Happy wined, "I'm hungry!"

"SHUDUPYOUSTUPIDCATIMTRYINGTOTHI-" Lucy stopped suddenly, making her evil Lucy face. "Actually," She said slowly, "Let's go find you some fish, I need to talk to you..."

Three unexpected dips in the river, several make shift fishing poles, and a rather nasty worm incident later...

Happy sat on a log, loudly munching on a fish. Lucy sat nearby trying to get at least a little bit dry. The fish had taken them longer to catch then she had expected and she needed to get back to Natsu soon. _Question time._ Lucy thought, then turned to Happy.

"So Happy..." She started, "Would Natsu... I don't know, every cry?"

The blue cat nearly spit his mouthful of fish clean across the river, "Wh-aa-at?" He stuttered, looking surprised, "Why do you want to know?"

"No reason," Lucy lied, "Just trying to make conversation..."

Happy took another bite of fish, "Nomnomnom-nom-chewchew-smack-crunch-nomnomnom-nom-sir." Happy said.

"Could you repeat that?" Lucy asked, trying to stay calm.

Happy, whose mouth was now quite empty, again said, "Nomnomnom-nom-chewchew-smack-crunch-nomnomnom-nom-sir!"

Lucy had to use all her will power not to 'Lucy kick' him as hard a she could, sadly she wanted information so her 'Lucy kicking' would have to wait. "As interesting as that is... COULD YOU PLEASE SPEAK ENGLISH?!"

"Why do you want to know?" Happy asked for the second time.

Lucy's head almost exploded, "Didn't we already go over this?" She asked.

"Ie, sir!" Happy replied.

"So..." Lucy prompted hopefully.

"FISH!" Happy yelled.

"HAPPY!" Lucy screamed.

Happy leaped of the log and into the sky, scared that Lucy had gone into evil Lucy mode. Laboriously he flapped his wings, weighed down by all the fish he had eaten. On the ground, Lucy slumped in defeat. "So long and thanks for all the fish!" He called to her, before leaving to find a place to sleep.

Lucy stood and started back towards their makeshift camp. She had been gone longer than she expected, and hoped Natsu was still asleep. Soon she was back to where the camp should have been, the clearing was empty. The only sign they had been there at all was the package lying discarded on the ground.

Somewhere in the forest a small blue winged cat waited nervously, hidden in a tree. Out of the darkness on the ground, a figure emerged. Quickly the cat flew down to it, perching on its head.

"What does she know?" It asked darkly.

"N-no-nothing, she knows nothing..." Happy stammered.

The figure laughed, "Your a funny cat..."

**The plot thickens... Did anyone get The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy reference?**

**Where do you guys want this story to go? I've go several different thing that could happen, but writing this I realized this is your story... Knowing you like it keeps me writing, so don't forget to review, and if you have any ideas PM me. **


End file.
